Wissahickon, union set to return to table as teachers' contract looms

LOWER GWYNEDD — Contract negotiations between the Wissahickon School Board and the Wissahickon Education Alliance (Support) union continue this month, but a new problem may arise as the district’s contract with its teachers is set to expire this year.

While representatives of the district and the WEA (Support) union — whose members include secretaries, classroom aides, bus drivers, custodians, maintenance personnel, lunch assistants, technical assistants, grounds personnel, security personnel and nursing assistants — continue the ongoing contract negotiations Jan. 15, some have begun to wonder what might happen if talks continue to stall for much longer, considering the contract with the WEA (Professional) — the union for the district’s teachers — ends June 30 and negotiations regarding the new contract begin this month.

The WEA originally announced a strike set for Oct. 29, 2012, after the board rejected a final plea to reconsider a third-party fact-finding report regarding terms for a new contract. The two sides then agreed to come back to the table and the WEA-S canceled the strike for a 45-day “cooling off period,” which allowed for further discussions. While talks have continued, at this point, no deal appears in sight.

WEA Co-President Ann Marie McDowell said in a formal statement she hoped the bargaining session would be productive. She said the union encourages the district to move off of its position to “strip benefits from members” and the “threat to subcontract” the special education department.

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“It is difficult to predict the future but as I see it, if the district is unwilling to settle the support staff contract which makes up a small portion of the district’s budget with the funds already set aside, the likeliness that the teachers contract will settle prior to the expiration date … is slim to none,” she said.

She said the WEA leadership has many options to consider, including merging the two contracts, and are weighing the pros and cons.

“As it stands, Joann and I will be bargaining both contacts simultaneously and we hope that the district is prepared for the pressure that will bring from the community,” she said. “Again, this is an affordable contract, that will not cause a tax increase that the taxpayers have already paid for. It is time release the funds, settle and move on.”

District chief negotiator Jeffrey Sultanik said the potential situation of two simultaneous negotiations is “not unusual.” He said the City of Philadelphia, for example, deals with “umpteen unions at one time” so it shouldn’t pose a problem for the two unions to negotiate new contracts.

He said the only potential problem that he could foresee would be if both unions held bargaining sessions at the same time because it would be impossible for negotiators to be in two places at once.